


Tale of Two Cities

by EmmaKeladry



Category: Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
Genre: Cuddles, Date Night, Ficlet, Friends to Lovers, Garashir - Freeform, Holding Hands, M/M, Musicals, Romance, Shore Leave, Sweet Moments
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-03
Updated: 2020-11-03
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:16:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 685
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27379324
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmmaKeladry/pseuds/EmmaKeladry
Summary: Julian takes Garak on a special date. A very sweet moment between the two of them.Takes place during season 5.
Relationships: Julian Bashir/Elim Garak
Comments: 1
Kudos: 31





	Tale of Two Cities

**Author's Note:**

> I watched "A Simple Wish" with Martin Short and Mara Wilson tonight. In the movie, Annabelle's father is auditioning for a musical and it's so beautiful. It inspired this cute little scene. Hope you like it!
> 
> (Written to distract myself from the election things happening in the US.)

“My dear doctor, how did you convince me to attend this _play_ with you?” Garak walked slowly beside Doctor Bashir as they slowly moved through the crowded group of nicely dressed beings.

Julian fiddled with his bowtie and smiled. “It’s a rare treat to see a theatrical production that isn’t holograms, but actually live people performing for the audience. Seeing the actors respond to the audience. It’s better this way.”

“I’ll take your word for it.” Garak batted at Julian’s hand, adjusting the position of his bowtie into the correct position. “There. Don’t touch it.”

The grin he received in response was almost worth it. Two lights flashed and the doors, heavy old wooden doors instead of sleek automatic, to the grand auditorium opened and were held in position by ushers. The guests gradually made their way to their seats. Julian led the way to their seats on the first level balcony, set off to the left side of the stage. Garak gave a soft smile, admiring his own detailed work in Julian’s tuxedo. He did look quite dashing. The fabric he’d chosen perfectly molded the doctor’s lean frame and accented the correct places. When Julian had requested the outfit, Garak hadn’t realized that this was the doctor’s plan for their evening. Doctor Bashir had requested time off for this “adventure”. Julian gestured to their seats and sat down.

“You will wrinkle your suit jacket if you sit like that,” Garak commented, taking his place beside him. He noted the curved ceilings of the auditorium and assumed it was for acoustic purposes.

“I’ll risk it.” Julian grinned, but gently pulled at the material of his jacket and moved slightly in his seat.

“What is the… plot of this _play_?”

Julian turned slightly in his seat. “Actually, it’s a musical called Tale of Two Cities. It’s based on a historical novel by Charles Dickens, in 1859, which is set in London and Paris during the French Revolution.”

Garak held up one hand to stop him. “A Revolution sounds promising at least. I prefer to discover the rest of this mundane story as it develops, which I’m sure will be very predictable.”

The light dimmed, signaling the beginning of the musical.

“You’ll enjoy it,” Julian whispered as the overture began.

Garak gave a soft sigh. He doubted he would enjoy this.

As the musical progressed, Garak observed the changes in his companion; the tilt of his head as he watched, the glimmer of his eyes in the dim lights as he soaked up every word and note from the musical. It was… amusing. Not long into the performance, Garak felt Julian’s warm hand touch the back of his. It surprised him. He held back a smile as he flipped over his hand and let Julian’s warm fingers thread between his cold ones. Such soft and smooth skin. Julian gave a gentle squeeze and looked over at him. He smiled. Garak nodded once and returned his attention to the stage.

As the story and the music continued Julian slid lower in his seat. But he kept his hand in Garak’s, gently rubbing his thumb up and down in a soothing motion. It was comforting in an odd way. Garak froze as Julian leaned his head against his shoulder. Such a public display of affection from his dear doctor. But very welcome.

_“It’s a far, far better thing that I do now, than I’ve ever done before. You want to miss me, but not to kiss me. It’s a far, far better thing that I do now than I’ve ever done… before!”_

A beautiful crescendo. The actor knelt in front of the guillotine and lowered his head beneath the rack as the last of his note rang out in the theater. A tear ran down Julian’s cheek. Sweet, sentimental human. Garak gave Julian’s hand a squeeze. While he still didn’t exactly enjoy such an ancient form of entertainment, regaling the story of a time and place he never experienced, this moment made it worth it. Garak liked holding hands with his dear doctor and spending time alone with Julian.


End file.
